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f    LIBRAf 

I        UNIVERS'- 


Dedication  Exercises 

of  Armstrong  Building 

FOR  NESMITH  LIBRARY,  WINDHAM 
NEW  HAMPSHIRE,  JANUARY  4,   1899 


By  LEONARD  ALLISON  MORRISON 


GEORGE  W.  ARMSTRONG,  PUBLISHER 

Boston,    Mass. 

1899 


PRESS 

MILLS,  KNIGHT  i.  CO. 

BOSTON. 


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in  2007  with  funding  from 

IVIicrosoft  Corporation 


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ARMSTRONG    BUILDING    OF    THE 
NESMITH   LIBRARY. 


Col.  Thomas  Nesmith  having  by  will  left  three  thousand 
dollars  to  the  town  of  Windham,  N.  H.,  for  the  establishment 
of  a  library,  the  town,  having  at  a  legal  town  meeting  duly 
accepted  that  gift,  took  the  initiatory  steps  for  the  establish- 
ment of  the  library  in  April,  1871. 

The  first  instalment  of  books  was  purchased  on  May  9th, 
1871.  The  books  were  placed  in  an  ante-room  prepared  for 
the  purpose  in  the  upper  town  hall.  The  library  increased 
and  another  apartment  had  also  to  be  used.  Things  were  in 
this  unfortunate  condition  when  the  incipient  steps  were 
taken  which  led  to  the  erection  of  the  ' '  Armstrong  Build- 
ing ' '  for  the  Nesmith  Library,  which  were  in  this  wise  :  — 

Knowing  that  George  Washington  Armstrong  liked  to 
read  such  works  as  the  Reports  of  the  New  Hampshire  Library 
Commissioners,  as  those  interesting  ones  gave  an  account  of 
each  library  in  the  State,  of  which  an  account  could  be 
given, — their  size,  their  prosperity,  kind  of  building  pos- 
sessed, and  whether  they  were  a  gift  or  otherwise, —  and 
having  received  the  third  biennial  report,  I  procured  another 
copy  and  forwarded  it  to  him.     There  were  descriptions  and 


illustrations  of  library  buildings,  many  of  tbem  the  gifts 
of  public-spirited  citizens,  showing  how  the  resources  of 
wealth  had  been  consecrated  to  the  public  good;  and  a 
suggestion  was  made  that  it  would  be  a  fitting  opportunity 
for  him  to  give  a  memorial  library  building  for  the  Nesmith 
Library  in  Windham,  the  old  home  of  his  ancestors. 

The  idea  was  new  to  him  ;  it  had  not  entered  his  mind  ; 
and,  when  writing  me  soon  afterward,  he  asked  me  what  I 
meant.  I  replied,  June  24,  1897:  "When  I  sent  you  the 
Report,  with  the  buildings  of  various  libraries,  I  meant  what 
I  said,  —  that  it  would  be  a  very  fine  and  fitting  thing  for 
you,  a  descendant  of  some  of  our  early  settlers,  to  give  it  a 
library  building,  in  memory  of  your  fathers  ;  "  and  the  mat- 
ter was  dropped.  Nothing  further  was  said  on  the  subject 
till  he  visited  me  on  the  afternoon  of  May  2,  1898,  when,  in 
the  course  of  conversation,  he  broached  the  subject  of  the 
erection  of  a  Nesmith  Library  building  for  the  town. 

I  had  supposed  the  subject  had  been  dismissed  from  his 
mind ;  but  he  had  been  thinking  about  it,  and  the  more  he 
thought  the  more  he  was  impressed  with  the  plan  to  do  it, 
in  very  loving  memory  of  his  ancestors.  He  said  —  much  to 
my  surprise  and  joy  —  that  he  had  concluded  to  do  it. 

When  it  was  announced  that  a  building  for  the  Nesmith 
Library  was  to  be  built,  and  the  name  of  the  donor  for  the 
time  withheld,  it  created  great  curiosity  as  to  whom  the 
bestower  of  the  gift  might  be,  and  a  sense  of  thankfulness 
for  his  kindness. 

The  seal  of  secrecy  was  removed  June  12,  and  a  town 
meeting  was  called  to  meet  June  25,  1898.  The  following 
proceedings  were  enacted :  — 


George  Washington  Armstrong. 


WARRANT  FOR   SPECIAI,   MEETING. 

I  ^-^  j  Zbe  state  of  IRew  Dampsblre. 

71?  fAe  inhabitants  of  the  town  of  Wind/iam,  in  the  county  of  Rockingham,  in 
said  State,  qualified  to  vote  in  town  affairs  : 

You  are  hereby  notified  to  meet  at  lower  town  hall,  in  said  town, 
on  Saturday,  the  25th  inst.,  at  two  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  to  act 
upon  the  following  articles  :  — 

To  see  if  the  town  will  vote  to  grant  leave,  to  a  responsible  party, 
to  erect  upon  the  town  common  a  suitable  and  substantial  building 
for  the  town  library,  the  same  to  be  donated  to  the  town  when  com- 
pleted. 

To  see  if  the  town  will  leave  it  to  the  selectmen,  in  connection  with 
the  donor,  to  decide  upon  the  location  of  the  building,  and  all  matters 
relative  thereto. 

To  take  any  further  action  that  may  be  desired  relative  to  the  sub- 
ject before  the  meeting. 

Given  under  our  hands  and  seal  this  tenth  day  of  June,  in  the  year 
A.  D.  1898. 

Augustus  L.  Barker, 
George  H.  Ci,ark, 
Joseph  W.  Dinsmoor, 

Selectmen  of  Windham. 
Windham,  N.  H.,  June  25,  1898. 

We  hereby  certify  that  we  gave  notice  to  the  inhabitants  within 
named  to  meet  at  the  time  and  place,  and  for  the  purpose  within 
mentioned,  by  posting  up  an  attested  copy  of  the  within  warrant  at 
the  place  of  meeting  within  named,  and  a  like  copy  at  the  store  of 
John  G.  Bradford,  being  a  public  place  in  said  town,  on  the  tenth  day 
of  June,  1898. 

Augustus  L.  Barker, 
Joseph  W.  Dinsmoor, 

Selectmen  of  Windham. 


PROCEEDINGS   OF  SPECIAL   MEETING. 

Windham,  N.  H.,  June  25,  1898. 

The  meeting  was  called  to  order  by  the  moderator,  Horace  Berry. 
After  reading  of  the  warrant  the  following  action  was  taken :  — 

Article  i.  Voted,  To  accept  the  gift  of  a  library  building  to  be 
built  on  the  town  common. 

Article  2.  Voted,  That  the  selectmen  and  the  donor  select  the 
site  for  the  same. 

Voted,  That  a  recess  of  ten  minutes  be  taken  to  look  at  the  location 
of  the  same. 

Article  3.     Voted,  That  we,  as  voters  of  the  town  of  Windham,  in 
town  meeting  assembled,  do  express  our  heartfelt  thanks  to  the  donor 
for  his  magnificent  gift  of  a  library  building  for  the  use  of  the  town. 
«  •  «  »  * 

Adjourned. 

A  true  record  of  the  meeting  and  the  proceedings  thereof. 

Attest :        John  B.  Cochran, 

Town  Clerk. 

The  town  meeting  having  accepted  the  gift  of  Mr.  Arm- 
strong, the  location  was  decided  upon  the  sixteenth  day  of 
July.  Monday  morning,  July  24,  ground  was  broken  for  the 
building. 

Mr.  Armstrong  had  wisely  decided  to  build  of  field  stone 
a  solid,  substantial  structure.  That  material  was  new  to  us 
as  a  building  material,  which  is  used  by  the  rich  and  opulent 
in  all  the  cities,  in  their  abodes,  and  in  their  rustic  homes. 

He  selected  as  architect  William  Weare  Dinsmoor,  of 
Boston,  Mass.,  a  native  of  Windham;  and  the  rare  good  taste 
and  comeliness  of  the  structure  show  the  wisdom  of  the 
selection. 


Architect  and  Contractor.s. 


The  stonelaying  was  done  by  Loren  Emerson  Bailey,  a 
native  of  Windham,  but  now  a  resident  of  Salem.  The  car- 
penter work  was  done  by  George  William  Thorn,  a  resident 
of  Salem,  but  the  fifth  generation  in  descent  from  William 
Thom,  one  of  the  hardy  Scotch-Irish  first  settlers  of  Wind- 
ham. 

The  mason  work  was  done  by  Moses  Colby  Page  of  this 
town,  and  the  painting  by  Walker  Haigh  of  Salem.  This 
makes  the  completed  structure  all  in  great  good  taste,  and  is 
admirably  adapted  for  the  library  for  which  it  was  intended. 

The  building  is  designed  for  beauty,  for  convenience,  for 
durability.  It  is  located  fifteen  feet  front,  fifty-five  feet  west, 
and  parallel  with  the  town  house,  having  a  southern  expo- 
sure. It  is  fifty-three  feet  long  by  thirty- three  feet  wide, 
one  and  a  half  stories  in  height,  and  built  of  selected  pasture 
stone  from  the  old  tumbled  walls  from  the  pastures  of  James 
Cochran  and  William  C.  Harris.  The  stone  was  selected 
largely  from  the  northern  side  of  the  walls,  on  account  of 
being  more  densely  covered  with  moss.  The  result  gives  the 
building  a  greater  variety  of  color,  and  adds  much  to  its 
artistic  appearance. 

The  solid  walls  of  the  building  —  four  feet  at  the  base, 
battering  to  two  feet  at  frieze  —  are  constructed  entirely  upon 
a  ledge.  The  building  is  covered  with  fireproof  shingles, 
colored  ox-blood  red.  The  interior  is  partitioned  off  as  fol- 
lows :  vestibule,  delivery  room,  reading  (or  memorial)  room, 
stackroom  and  librarian's  room.  We  enter  the  building 
by  the  portico,  at  the  front,  by  some  broad  concrete  steps, 
and  are  admitted  to  a  large  vestibule.  This  is  wainscoted 
four  feet  high,  walls  colored  vermilion,  and  the  ceiling  buff, 


8 


lighted  with  a  large  iron  lantern,  of  an  antique  Venetian  pat- 
tern. 

I^eading  from  the  vestibule  is  the  delivery  room,  which  is 
ten  by  fifteen  feet  in  size,  with  a  large  seat  to  accommodate 
those  waiting ;  also  a  desk  for  the  reception  of  catalogues, 
cards  and  books. 

The  wood  for  the  interior  finish  of  the  entire  building  is 
selected  cypress,  finished  natural ;  all  the  floors  are  polished 
hard  pine. 

The  stack  (or  book)  room,  which  is  twenty-four  feet  by 
thirty  feet,  has  a  shelving  capacity  of  ten  thousand  volumes. 
The  shelving  required  for  present  demands  is  for  3,102  vol- 
umes. The  shelves  are  tasteful  and  neat,  and  are  so  ar- 
ranged that  they  can  fit  books  of  any  size.  The  walls  of  this 
room  are  colored  illuminate  canary,  which  makes  the  room 
very  light  and  cheerful. 

The  librarian's  room — leading  from  the  stack  (or  book) 
room  to  the  reading  (or  memorial)  room  —  is  furnished  with 
a  large  oak  desk,  chairs,  shelving,  closets,  and  everything 
required  for  the  convenience  of  the  librarian. 

A  door  leads  from  the  vestibule,  and  one  (previously 
mentioned)  from  the  librarian's  room,  and  an  arch  from  the 
delivery  room,  into  the  reading  (or  memorial)  room.  This  is 
the  choicest  room  in  the  library.  This  room  is  twenty  feet 
wide  by  thirty  feet  long,  and  wainscoted  four  feet  high,  run- 
ning around  the  room.  On  the  opposite  side  of  the  room  from 
the  arch  is  a  mantel  eight  feet  wide,  seven  feet  six  inches 
high,  enclosing  a  large  fireplace,  faced  with  cream-colored 
brick.  Below  the  mantel,  and  over  the  fireplace,  is  a  bronze 
tablet,  measuring  four  feet  in  length  by  two  feet  and  eight 


inches  in  width,  bearing  this  inscription  in  burnished  let- 
ters :  — 

NESMITH    LIBRARY. 

This  buii^ding  is  a  gifo?  to  the  town  of  Windham, 
N.  H.,  FROM  George  Washington  Armstrong,  of 
Brooki^ine,  Mass.,  MDCCCXCVIII.,  in  memory  op  his 
paternai,  ancestors,  residents  of  Windham,  and 
descendants  of  g11.nockie  armstrong,  the  famous 

BORDER  CHIEFTAIN  OF  CaNNOBIE,  SCOTLAND,  SOME  OF 
WHOSE  FAMII^Y  EMIGRATED  TO  THE  NORTH  OF  IrEI^AND 
IN  THE  SEVENTEENTH,  AND  TO  THIS  COUNTRY  IN  THE 
EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY.      PRESENTED  AT  THE  SUGGESTION 

OF  Leonard  Ai,lison  Morrison  of  Windham. 


The  Rev.  James  Pethick  Harper,  Pastor, 
John  Edwin  Cochran,  Town  Clerk, 
Augustus  Leroy  Barker,    1 
George  Henry  Clark,         [  Selectmen, 
Joseph  Wilson  Dinsmoor,  J 

Trustees  of  Nesmith  Library. 

William  Weare  Dinsmoor,  of  Boston,  Mass., 

Architect. 

On  the  walls  are  three  large,  well-chosen  pictures,  master- 
pieces of  ancient  architecture,  pleasing  and  instructive ;  they 
are  the  Coliseum  at  Rome,  the  Acropolis  at  Athens,  and  the 
Forum  at  Rome. 

In  this  same  room,  at  one  side  of  the  arch,  is  a  large,  fine 
picture  of  George  Washington  Armstrong. 

This  room   is  furnished   with   one   large   quartered-oak 


reading  -  table  and  twelve  colonial  chairs  to  match.  It  is 
lighted  with  three  large  iron  lamps,  made  from  special  designs 
of  the  architect.  The  polished  floor  —  with  not  a  nail  visible 
on  the  surface  —  is  selected  rift  Georgia  hard  pine,  each 
board  two-and-a-half -inch  face,  laid  with  a  border  of  three 
feet  around  the  room.  The  walls  are  colored  a  delicate  nile 
green,  with  a  very  light-pink  ceiling,  giving  a  play  of  color 
which  is  harmonious,  as  well  as  restful  to  the  eye. 

Over  the  stack  (or  book)  room  is  a  large  attic,  which  can 
be  finished,  and  make  room  for  about  eight  thousand  vol- 
umes, should  such  place  be  needed.  This  is  reached  by  a 
short  flight  of  stairs  leading  from  the  stackroom.  In  a  large 
cellar, —  extending  the  whole  of  the  building, —  which  is  dry, 
well  lighted  and  cemented,  is  a  furnace,  capable  of  comfort- 
ably heating  the  building  in  a  few  moments  after  starting 
the  fire. 

The  building  was  finished,  and  the  dedication  was  decided 
to  be  held  Jan.  4,  1899,  at  two  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  with 
the  following 

PROGRAMME  : 

Prayer  by  Rev.  James  Pethick  Harper. 
Speech  by  President  I,eonard  Allison  Morrison. 
Introduction  of  Hon  Albert  B.  Pillsbury  by  President. 
Address  by  Hon.  Albert  E.  Pillsbury. 
Introduction  of  William  Henry  Anderson,  Esq. 
Speech  by  William  Henry  Anderson,  Esq. 
Remarks  by  Rev.  Augustus  Berry. 

Presentation  of  keys  by  George  Washington  Armstrong, 
Esq.,  to  Rev.  James  Pethick  Harper. 


Reception  of  the  keys  by  Rev.  James  Pethick  Harper. 

Remarks  by  William  Calvin  Harris,  Esq,,  and  reading  of 
resolutions  of  thanks  to  George  Washington  Armstrong. 

Vote  on  resolutions. 

Presentation  of  beautifully  embossed  resolutions  to  George 
Washington  Armstrong. 

"America  "  —  Sung  by  the  audience. 

Exercises  closed  with  the  benediction,  by  Rev.  Augustus 
Berry. 

The  President  :  Fellow-citizens, —  The  exercises  of  this 
interesting  occasion  will  be  opened  with  prayer  by  Rev.  James 
P.  Harper. 

PRAYER  BY  REV.  JAMES  P.  HARPER. 

Almighty  and  ever  blessed  Lord  our  God,  we  come  to-day 
to  ask  thy  blessing.  We  acknowledge  thee  to  be  our  Cre- 
ator, Father  and  Friend.  For  our  life,  both  temporal  and 
spiritual,  we  give  thee  hearty  thanks.  Thou  hast  sur- 
rounded us  with  innumerable  blessings  and  crowned  our  days 
with  thy  kindness.  From  the  beginning  of  the  year,  even 
unto  its  close,  thy  favor  has  been  upon  our  land.  We  bless 
thee  for  our  churches  and  our  schools  and  our  libraries,  for 
all  the  opportunities  of  education  and  culture.  We  thank 
thee  especially  at  this  time  that  thou  hast  put  it  into  the 
heart  of  our  honored  and  beloved  friend  to  give  to  this  town, 
for  perpetual  use,  this  beautiful  building,  for  the  preservation 
of  its  library ;  and,  since  we  can  make  no  adequate  return 
for  such  a  princely  gift,  we  beseech  thee  to  bestow  on  him 
and  his  Thine  abundant  grace  and  spiritual  blessing  in  Jesus 


12 


Christ,  richer,  more  abiding  and  more  satisfying  than  any- 
thing earth  can  impart. 

We  pray  thee  preserve  this  building  from  all  harm.  May 
it  be  sacred  to  the  noble  purpose  to  which  it  is  now  dedicated. 
Give  wisdom  to  those  who  shall  have  charge  of  it,  and  to  the 
town  who  shall  provide  for  it.  May  they  do  it  with  the  same 
generosity  which  prompted  its  gift. 

Bless  us  in  the  further  service  of  this  hour,  our  Father ; 
bless  our  town,  our  church,  our  schools,  and  all  things  that 
tend  for  the  uplifting  of  the  people.  May  we  be  a  people 
whose  God  is  the  I^ord,  and  thine  shall  be  the  praise  forever. 
Amen. 

SPEECH   BY  THE   PRESIDENT,  I,EONARD   AI<I,ISON   MORRISON. 

Fellow-citizens, —  We  will  dedicate  this  beautiful  building 
to-day.  This  is  the  first  time  the  town  has  ever  had  a  public 
library  building  presented  to  it  in  its  i8o  years  of  living  his- 
tory. You  have  a  house,  from  cemented  cellar  to  painted 
roof,  from  stem  to  stern,  which  is  dry,  and  the  most  thorough 
that  can  be  built. 

You  have  some  of  the  best  material  in  existence,  that 
with  which  the  rich  erect  costly  mansions  in  our  cities.  It 
is  so  firm,  so  compact,  so  substantial,  so  durable !  Its 
strong,  rugged  wall  will  be  as  lasting  as  the  solid  ledge  on 
which  it  stands. 

The  work  is  done ;  it  is  well  done,  and  not  done  too  soon. 
One  of  the  most  pleasing  thoughts  of  this  happy  moment  is 
that  it  is  an  historic  act.  It  is  an  act  that  has  the  immutable 
stamp  of  an  earthly  immortality  upon  it.  We,  with  all  our 
hands  have  wrought,  and  all  our  hearts  have  loved,  must 


13 

pass  away ;  but  this  building  and  this  library,  we  hope,  will 
not  pass  away.  Other  hands  will  tend  it;  other  feet  will 
press  the  gravelly  road  to  reach  this  favored  spot ;  other  per- 
sons will  read  and  consult  the  volumes  of  this  library.  This 
library  complements  the  common  school,  and  leads  to  higher 
education  and  broader  culture. 

It  will  preserve,  in  loving  remembrance,  him  whose  kindly 
thought  placed  it  here  in  memory  of  his  fathers.  He  speaks 
with  the  silent  eloquence  of  deeds. 

To  his  ancestors  it  is  dedicated. 

"  For  them  each  evening  hath  its  shining  star 
And  every  Sabbath  day  its  golden  sun." 

We  think  of  them  and  all  their  rugged  lives  have  earned 
for  us. 

Mr.  George  Washington  Armstrong  has  presented 
us  this  building.  It  is  tasteful ;  it  is  strong;  it  is  beautiful. 
We  tender  our  thanks  for  his  munificent  gift. 

Mr.  William  W.  Dinsmoor,  the  able  architect,  has  watched 
over  every  detail  from  start  to  finish.  Nothing  has  escaped 
his  notice.  It  is  all  there ;  and  he  has  our  most  profound 
thanks. 

The  President:  Ladies  and  Gentlemen, —  We  have  one 
here  to-day,  not  a  son  of  old  Windham,  but  a  sort  of  grand- 
son, whose  mother,  Elizabeth  Dinsmoor,  was  a  native,  and 
before  her  marriage  a  resident,  of  this  town.  I  have  the  satis- 
faction of  introducing  the  ex-Attomey-General  of  Massachu- 
setts, Hon.  Albert  E.  Pillsbury,  of  Boston,  Mass.,  who  will 
now  address  you. 


14 


HON.    AIvBERT   E.    PILIvSBURY'S   ADDRESS. 

Mr.  President,  and  Citizens  of  Windham, —  The  public 
spirit  of  a  descendent  of  Windham — a  true  son  of  this  town, 
despite  the  accident  of  his  birth  in  another  place  —  has 
installed  your  public  library  in  a  home  of  its  own.  A  new 
and  attractive  building  of  native  stone  from  your  own  fields, 
designed  and  built  by  one  of  your  own  sons,  admirably 
adapted  to  its  situation,  commodious  and  convenient  for  its 
purpose,  this  gift  is  alike  worthy  of  the  generous  friend  who 
bestows  it,  and  of  you  who  are  its  fortunate  and  grateful 
recipients.  I  am  not  surprised  that  the  people  of  Wind- 
ham were  unwilling  to  allow  this  interesting  event  to  pass 
without  notice,  though  our  friend,  with  native  modesty, 
wished  to  avoid  any  public  celebration  of  his  gift.  Whether 
it  was  his  modesty  alone  which  led  him  to  suggest  that  my 
address  be  very  short  is  another  question,  but  I  shall  comply 
with  the  request.  Of  Mr.  Armstrong  himself  I  need  say 
nothing  to  the  people  of  Windham,  nor  can  we  say  in  his  pres- 
ence all  that  might  otherwise  be  said.  You  know  him  by 
other  proofs  of  his  interest  in  your  welfare,  no  less  kindly,  if 
less  substantial,  than  this  latest  gift.  We  Massachusetts  peo- 
ple, his  neighbors,  approve  and  applaud  all  that  he  has  done 
or  may  do  for  Windham ;  but  we  intend  to  keep  him  in  Mas- 
sachusetts, where  we  eat  with  him,  ride  with  him,  bank  with 
him,  and  shall  continue  to  avail  ourselves  of  "Armstrong's 
Transfer ' '  for  all  purposes  which  do  not  involve  the  transfer 
of  Armstrong  out  of  our  jurisdiction. 

As  I  need  say  no  more  of  him,  let  me  say  a  word  for 
one  whose  title  to  join   in  this  celebration  may  not  be  so 


15 

clear.  I  count  it  an  honor  tliat  you  have  remembered  my  re- 
lation to  Windham  and  my  descent  from  the  sturdy  and  per- 
sistent race  who  founded  and  built  up  this  community.  It  is 
immaterial  to  me  whether  you  call  them  Scotch,  which  they 
were,  or  "  Scotch-Irish,"  which  nobody  ever  was.  I  read  the 
other  day  a  truculent  pamphlet  of  some  thirty  pages,  written 
to  prove  that  our  ancestors  who  settled  in  this  part  of  the 
country  were  all  Irish,  because  they  sojourned  for  a  while  in 
Ireland  in  the  sixteenth  or  seventeenth  century.  The  lively 
writer  describes  himself  as  an  Irishman,  but  he  lives  in 
Massachusetts.  If  Irishmen  can  live  in  America,  it  would 
seem  that  Scotchmen  could  live  in  Ireland.  I  am  ready  to 
admit,  if  necessary,  the  common  origin  of  the  two  races.  If 
we  go  back  far  enough,  we  may  find  the  common  origin  of 
all  mankind  in  a  single  race.  But  after  our  remote  Gaelic 
ancestors  left  Hibemia,  if  they  ever  inhabited  there,  and 
dwelt  by  themselves  in  Britain  for  a  thousand  years,  devel- 
oping laws,  manners,  customs,  character,  and  even  a  lan- 
guage of  their  own,  they  may  fairly  claim  to  be  a  separate 
nationality  if  not  a  separate  race.  I  cannot  admit  that 
they  were  made  Irishmen  by  alighting  on  the  soil  of  Ireland 
in  their  flight  from  the  persecution  of  the  Covenanters.  I 
am  ready  to  admit  that  "  Scotch- Irish,"  applied  to  them, 
is  a  misnomer.  It  is  no  name  of  their  seeking.  They  were 
Scotch,  pure  and  simple,  with  all  the  characteristic  faults 
and  virtues  of  that  peculiar  people, —  testy,  obstinate,  narrow- 
minded,  bigoted  very  likely,  but  hard-working,  law-abid- 
ing. God-fearing,  prudent,  resolute  and  successful.  Better 
blood  than  theirs  for  the  building  of  towns  or  states  never 
flowed  in  American  veins,  and  some  day  they  will  have  the 


i6 


place  tliat  belongs  to  them  in  the  histor}'^  of  the  American 
nation. 

A  share  of  this  blood  is  mine.  In  our  neighboring  com- 
monwealth the  merits  of  the  Scotch  settlers  are  obscured  in 
the  smoke  of  the  incense  perpetually  burning  there  around 
the  Pilgrim  and  the  Puritan,  and  this  opportunity  to  exploit 
my  Scotch  ancestors  comes  to  me  as  a  favor.  Standing  with 
you  to-day  on  the  spot  where  they  made  a  garden  out  of  the 
wilderness,  I  ask  a  moment's  indulgence  to  make  known  cer- 
tain facts,  of  importance  to  me  and  I  trust  not  without  inter- 
est to  you.  One  of  the  original  settlers  of  your  parent  town 
of  lyondonderry  in  17 19  was  my  lineal  ancestor.  The  first 
lay-out  of  land  in  what  is  now  Windham  after  the  arrival  of 
the  Scotch  in  these  parts,  was  made  in  1723  to  my  ancestor, 
John  Dinsmoor.  One  of  the  petitioners  for  the  incorporation 
of  Windham  was  my  ancestor,  Robert  Dinsmoor,  who  was 
named  in  the  charter  of  1742  as  the  first  member  of  the  com- 
mittee deputed  to  call  the  first  town  meeting,  which  he  did, 
and  was  there  elected  the  first  member  of  the  first  board  of 
selectmen  of  Windham.  At  the  same  meeting  another  kins- 
man of  mine  was  elected  "inspector  of  dears," — d-e-a-r-s, 
as  it  is  written  in  the  town  records, —  an  ambiguous  title, 
perhaps,  but  I  take  it  as  another  proof  of  the  great  trust  and 
confidence  reposed  in  my  family  by  their  townsmen.  And 
from  that  time  my  maternal  ancestors  always  dwelt  in  this 
town  until  my  mother  left  it,  some  eighteen  years  before  I 
was  bom,  and  thereby  deprived  me,  without  any  fault  of  my 
own,  of  the  honor  of  being  myself  a  native  of  Windham. 
Now,  if  you  will  pardon  this  digression,  we  will  return  to  our 
proper  subject. 


17 

The  first  important  fact  to  be  emphasized  here  to-day  is 
that  this  new  building  makes  your  library  a  permanent  insti- 
tution. It  is  no  longer  a  tramp  or  a  tenant ;  it  is  a  house- 
holder. This  substantial  shelter  puts  it  practically  beyond 
reach  of  destruction  by  the  elements;  and  Col.  Nesmith's  leg- 
acy and  the  wise  legislation  of  New  Hampshire,  with  your 
own  public  spirit,  have  already  put  it  beyond  reach  of  decay 
by  neglect, —  a  more  dangerous  enemy  even  than  fire.  Your 
past  experience  will  help  you  to  appreciate  these  new  con- 
ditions. In  our  friend  Morrison's  invaluable  History  you 
may  read  his  account  of  the  series  of  attempts,  persistent  but 
long  unsuccessful,  to  establish  a  permanent  library  in  Wind- 
ham. The  first  began  in  the  year  1800,  with  "some  books 
in  the  hands  of  Samuel  Armour  and  John  Dinsmoor,  Esqs." 
Reenforced  by  a  modest  private  subscription,  sixty  volumes 
were  gathered  by  181 1,  some  two  hundred  in  1825,  and  four 
or  five  hundred  in  1859,  when  Deacon  Anderson,  their  keeper, 
gave  up  the  charge  with  his  other  earthly  responsibilities, 
and  the  library  died  an  ignominious  death  at  the  hands  of  the 
auctioneer.  The  historian  records  the  fact  that  this  library 
contained  "  no  works  of  fiction."  He  does  not  say  that  this 
was  what  it  died  of,  but  I  suspect  that  this  had  something  to 
do  with  it.  In  the  mean  time  Lieut. -Gov.  John  Nesmith, 
in  1839,  had  presented  to  each  school  district  a  library 
of  fifty  volumes, —  still  in  existence,  I  hope,  as  this  is  one 
of  the  best  uses  to  which  a  collection  of  books  can  be  ap- 
plied. In  185 1  an  attempt  was  made  to  establish  a  free 
town  library.  I  am  glad  to  recall  that  a  relative  of  mine,  that 
most  estimable  woman  the  late  Harriet  Dinsmoor,  was  espe- 
cially active  in  this  movement.     It  resulted  in  a  collection  of 


i8 

a  hundred  volumes,  which  perished  by  fire  in  1856.  After 
this  loss  and  the  dispersion  of  the  subscription  library,  Wind- 
ham seems  to  have  been  without  any  town  library  until  1871, 
when  the  bequest  of  Col.  Thomas  Nesmith  came  into  effect 
and  the  Nesmith  Free  Public  I^ibrary  was  established  upon 
his  modest  but  secure  foundation.  Tenant  of  a  corner  of  the 
town  house,  it  has  thriven  and  increased  with  good  manage- 
ment, and  it  now  removes  into  its  new  and  permanent  home  a 
substantial  collection  of  more  than  three  thousand  well-chosen 
volumes.  In  this  building,  safe  and  indestructible  so  far  as 
human  ingenuity  can  make  it  so,  with  abundant  room  for 
growth  and  facilities  for  use,  your  library  is  now  established 
for  all  time  as  the  most  valuable  possession  of  the  town.  And 
if  you  to-day  rechristen  it  the  "  Nesmith- Armstrong"  library, 
I  am  confident  that  the  shade  of  the  good  Colonel  Thomas 
will  smile  his  approval  and  share  the  satisfaction  with  which 
you  link  his  name  to  that  of  your  latest  benefactor. 

From  the  smallest  beginnings,  the  free  public  library  has 
now  taken  a  recognized  and  permanent  place  beside  the  free 
public  school  as  one  of  the  two  great  educating  forces  at  work 
among  the  American  people.  It  was  slow  to  take  root,  but  its 
later  growth  has  been  unparalleled.  The  first  public  library 
in  America  is  said  to  have  been  founded  at  Jamestown,  in 
162 1,  by  a  humble  gift  of  "  a  small  Bible,  with  cover  richly 
wrought,  a  great  church  Bible,  St.  Augustine  de  Civitate 
Dei,  Master  Perkins  his  Werkes,"  and  "  an  exact  and  true 
map  of  America."  The  aboriginal  savage,  instinctively  rec- 
ognizing an  enemy,  applied  his  torch  to  this  collection.  But 
its  ashes  have  spread  like  the  dust  of  Wy cliff e.  Our  library 
statistics  are  not  wholly  complete  or  reliable  ;  indeed,  the  stat- 


19 

istician  has  found  it  difficult  to  keep  pace  with  the  rapid 
growth  and  multiplication  of  free  libraries  :  but  we  know  that 
there  are  to-day  within  the  United  States  more  than  4,000 
public  libraries  of  more  than  i  ,000  volumes  each,  containing 
more  than  33,000,000  volumes;  and  627  of  these,  having  over 
3,000  volumes  each  and  together  more  than  9,000,000  vol- 
umes, are  strictly  free  public  libraries.  Of  the  libraries  of 
more  than  1,000  volumes  each.  New  Hampshire  has  122,  con- 
taining about  600,000  volumes ;  and  of  those  of  more  than 
3,000  volumes  each,  free  to  the  public.  New  Hampshire  has 
33,  containing  over  250,000  volumes.  The  latest  report  of  the 
library  commissioners  of  New  Hampshire,  in  1896,  shows  that 
the  whole  number  of  libraries  in  the  State  is  271,  containing 
674,568  volumes,  and  that  195  of  the  233  cities  and  towns  in 
the  State  are  possessed  of  free  public  libraries. 

And  here  let  me  mention  three  interesting  and  significant 
facts,  to  the  lasting  credit  of  our  native  State. 

The  earliest  free  public  library  in  New  Hampshire,  estab- 
lished by  the  town  of  Peterborough  in  1833,  has  a  substantial 
claim  to  be  considered  the  first  library  in  the  United  States 
founded  on  the  broad  basis  of  public  ownership  and  absolute 
freedom  to  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  town. 

The  earliest  law  of  any  New  England  state  authorizing 
public  taxation  for  the  support  of  free  public  libraries  was  the 
New  Hampshire  statute  of  1849,  Chapter  861.  Even  Massa- 
chusetts did  not  take  this  step  until  1851. 

And  New  Hampshire  was  the  first  state  of  the  Union,  and 
so  far  as  I  am  aware  is  yet  the  only  one,  to  require  an  annual 
levy  of  taxation  for  the  establishment  and  maintenance  of 
free  town  libraries,  which  was  done  by  an  act  of  March  29, 


20 


1895;  thus  making  free  town  libraries  universal,  and  giving 
them  a  permanent  legal  footing  and  a  secure  income.  I  com- 
mend these  facts  to  any  citizens  of  other  states  who  believe 
that  an  interest  in  letters  was  born  and  will  die  with  them. 

This  compulsory  tax  for  the  support  of  free  libraries  is  a 
proof  of  the  wise  and  liberal  policy  of  the  State  of  New  Hamp- 
shire. It  secures  the  establishment  and  the  steadj'-  growth  of 
some  sort  of  free  library  in  every  town.  But,  of  course,  it 
does  not  account  for  the  existence  or  the  liberal  endowment 
and  equipment  of  the  195  free  town  libraries  which  we  find  in 
New  Hampshire  to-day.  I  take  advantage  of  this  occasion  to 
suggest  a  question  which  may  some  time  force  itself  upon  pub- 
lic attention.  Within  the  memor)-^  of  the  present  generation 
it  has  become  common  for  the  prosperous  New  Englander  to 
make  his  native  or  ancestral  town  a  partaker  of  his  fortunes. 
So  rapidly  has  this  generous  custom  grown  that  we  now  hardly 
take  up  a  newspaper  without  reading  of  some  such  act  of  be- 
neficence. Our  rural  New  England  communities  are  being 
endowed  on  all  hands  with  free  libraries,  free  schools,  town 
halls,  hospitals,  public  parks  and  various  other  objects  of 
public  convenience  and  utility.  It  is  impossible  not  to  look 
upon  these  kindly  benefactions  with  an  approving  eye,  and  he 
would  be  deemed  a  captious  critic  who  censured  the  practice. 
But  these  gifts,  so  freely  bestowed,  must  be  wisely  used,  or 
they  may  defeat  the  purpose  of  the  givers.  Until  about  the 
middle  of  this  century  the  people  of  rural  New  England  were 
a  people  of  simple  habits  and  narrow  means.  What  they  had 
they  earned  by  hard  labor.  What  they  could  not  pay  for 
they  could  not  have.  Under  these  wholesome  conditions  was 
formed  the  sturdy  New  England   character,  rock-rooted  in 


21 


iiidustr>%  thrift  and  self-reliance,  which  has  outmastered  all 
other  American  types.  Its  influence  is  felt  to-day  in  every 
prosperous  community  from  here  to  the  Pacific.  It  is  the  best 
product  ever  raised  on  New  England  soil,  and  worth  all  the 
rest.  It  had  its  base  in  the  rugged  physical  strength  which 
alone  can  survive  our  rigorous  climate,  but  it  was  made  of  a 
tough  and  peculiar  mental  fibre.  Our  Mend  who  gave  you 
this  building  carries  in  his  family  crest  the  ' '  strong  arm  ' '  of 
his  race.  But  it  is  not  alone  the  strong  arm ;  it  is  the  strong 
heart,  the  strong  head,  the  strong  hope,  the  resolute  purpose 
to  do,  and  to  succeed,  that  go  to  the  making  and  keeping  of 
character.  And  character  can  be  undermined  and  thrown 
down  more  easily  than  it  can  be  built  up.  Kvery-day  wisdom 
teaches  us  that  it  is  what  a  man  earns  that  enriches  him. 
What  is  given  him  may  make  him  poor.  ' '  Nothing  cost, 
nothing  value  "  ;  "easy  comes,  easy  goes  "  ;  — these  homely 
saws  express  an  important  though  familiar  truth.  Will  this 
custom  of  liberal  giving  to  our  towns  and  villages  tend  to  sap 
the  character  of  their  people,  leading  them,  who  were  so 
sturdy  and  independent,  to  look  to  others  for  the  things  which 
they  have  been  accustomed  to  forego  or  to  provide  for  them- 
selves, and  making  them  thriftless  dependents  upon  the 
bounty  of  the  rich  ?  This  would  be,  indeed,  an  unfortunate 
return  for  all  this  well-meant  generosity.  I  have  said  enough 
to  suggest  that  in  making  this  gift  our  friend  has  laid  you 
under  a  weightier  obligation  to  yourselves  than  to  him  ;  the 
obligation  to  make  such  use  of  it  that  it  will  be  what  he  meant 
it  to  be, —  a  perpetual  help  to  your  own  work,  but  not  a  sub- 
stitute for  it. 

This  building  and  this  library'  are  here  to  be  used.  Without 


22 


reading,  all  these  books  are  no  better  than  so  much  blank  pa- 
per. The  debt  of  a  town  to  its  library  is  not  discharged  by- 
keeping  it  in  good  order  and  paying  in  the  annual  tax  levy 
and  the  income  of  the  invested  funds.  The  value  of  a  library 
is  not  measured  by  what  is  put  into  it,  but  by  what  is  taken 
out  of  it.  There  are  great  possibilities  even  in  a  library  of 
three  thousand  volumes.  A  collection  of  books  is,  as  Carlyle 
says,  "the  true  university  of  these  days."  There  is  a  liberal 
education  in  it  for  every  one  who  can  read.  It  is  a  perma- 
nent free  school,  not  limited  to  youth  or  to  three  terms  a  year. 
Every  man,  woman  and  child,  of  whatever  age,  situation  or  cir- 
cumstances, can  attend  it.  It  brings  to  the  service  of  every 
inhabitant  of  the  town  the  best  thought  which  the  best  minds 
have  contributed  to  all  forms  of  literature.  It  puts  in  every 
hand  a  key  to  the  history  of  nations,  the  mysteries  of  science, 
the  story  of  great  lives,  the  theories  of  the  economist,  the 
speculations  of  the  philosopher.  Upon  its  wings  you  may  fol- 
low the  traveller  through  foreign  lands,  the  explorer  to  the 
African  jungle  or  the  frozen  Arctic,  the  poet  and  novelist  to 
the  land  of  romance  and  of  dreams,  the  astronomer  to  the 
stars.  Think  of  Elihu  Burritt,  toiling  at  his  blacksmith's 
forge  to  earn  the  price  of  a  book  ;  think  of  Abraham  Lincoln, 
devouring  by  the  light  of  a  fire  of  chips  and  shavings  the  vol- 
ume which  he  tramped  forty  miles  to  borrow  and  return  ;  and 
contrast  their  lot  with  ours,  to  whom  the  free  public  library 
opens  this  exhaustless  fountain  of  mental  health  and  recrea- 
tion without  money  and  without  price. 

More  than  this.  One  of  the  highest  and  most  valua- 
ble uses  of  the  free  public  library  is  yet  to  be  developed, 
in   making   it   an   adjunct   or  a   part   of    the  public  school 


23 

sj-^stem.  This  pregnant  idea  was  suggested  half  a  century 
or  more  ago  by  that  versatile  statesman  and  scholar,  Albert 
Gallatin.  Its  importance  is  now  beginning  to  be  realized. 
Books  are  the  scholar's  tools,  and  a  knowledge  of  the  use  of 
books  is  the  foundation  of  scholarship.  Who  in  this  audience 
can  say  that  he  ever  had  any  intelligent  and  systematic  train- 
ing in  the  use  of  books  ?  Who  is  there  of  full  age  who  does 
not  realize  that  such  training  at  the  right  time  would  have 
been  of  the  greatest  value  ?  The  free  public  library  makes 
this  possible,  which  was  never  possible  before;  and  I  have 
no  doubt  that  the  use  of  the  library  will  soon  become  a  recog- 
nized and  essential  part  of  the  scheme  of  public  education, 
doubling  its  interest  and  more  than  doubling  its  value. 

The  great  problem  in  the  management  of  a  library  is  to 
keep  it  at  work.  How  is  it  used,  and  how  much  is  it  used  ?  — 
the  answer  to  these  questions  tells  what  a  library  is  worth. 
It  must  therefore  be  made  accessible  and  attractive.  The  use 
of  a  library  depends  so  much  upon  the  facilities  offered  for  its 
use  that  the  largest  liberality  in  this  direction  is  the  least  that 
ought  to  be  required.  A  free  town  librar^^  belongs  to  the 
townspeople,  whose  rights  of  proprietorship  ought  at  all  times 
to  be  recognized  and  exercised  with  the  utmost  freedom.  No 
narrow  restrictions  or  forced  economy  should  cramp  or  fetter 
the  people  in  the  use  of  their  own  books.  The  tendency  of 
the  best  library  management  everywhere  is  toward  the  re- 
moval of  restraints,  so  that  the  reading  public  may  have 
direct  and  free  access  to  the  shelves.  A  pleasant  and  com- 
fortable reading-room  like  this  now  provided  for  you  should 
be  open  to  the  people  on  every  day  and  evening  of  the  year. 
There  is  no  more  valuable  use  of  a  public  library  than  to  fur- 


24 

nish  an  attractive  and  wholesome  place  of  resort  to  those  who 
need  it,  and  who,  for  lack  of  a  better  place,  are  liable  to  find 
a  worse.  The  selection  of  books  should  be  liberal  enough  to 
satisfy  all  decent  tastes  and  supply  all  reasonable  demands. 
No  public  library  can  afford  to  be  afraid,  as  some  of  your 
predecessors  were,  of  fiction.  People  must  be  entertained 
and  amused.  Within  reasonable  limits,  recreation  is  worth  as 
much  as  instruction.  This  was  so  well  understood,  even  in 
the  earliest  times,  that  the  founder  of  the  first  library  of  which 
history  gives  any  account,  in  ancient  Egypt,  wrote  above  its 
door,  "A  storehouse  of  mediciyie  for  the  mind."  The  largest 
demand  upon  all  free  libraries  is  for  light  literature,  so  called, 
—  though  some  of  us  find  it  heavy  enough, —  and  it  must  be 
met.  It  is  to  be  met  by  judicious  selection.  There  is  an  abun- 
dance of  works  of  fiction,  poetry  and  romance  approved  by 
time,  and  occasionally  a  new  work  of  real  merit.  They  will 
serve  at  least  one  good  purpose,  in  affording  a  happy  relief 
from  the  overreading  of  the  ' '  yellow  ' '  newspaper.  The  free 
public  library  must  be  a  popular  institution.  It  cannot  stand 
upon  any  narrow  foundation.  Its  management  must  meet  all 
tastes,  consult  all  desires,  supply  all  uses ;  always  mindful 
that  it  does  not  exist  for  pedants  or  scholars,  but  for  a  pur- 
pose higher  even  than  the  culture  of  scholarship, — to  lift  the 
minds  and  broaden  the  lives  of  the  plain  people,  on  whom 
this  country  depends,  into  a  realm  as  wide  as  the  great 
Republic  of  Letters. 

The  President:  Ladies  and  Gentlemen, — There  is  one 
whom  we  are  always  glad  to  hear,  and  whose  voice  is  usuall}'' 
heard.     I  have  the  pleasure  of  introducing  to  you  William 


25 

Henry  Anderson,  Esq.,  a  lawyer  in  Lowell,  Mass.,  who  will 
speak  to  us. 

MR.    ANDERSON'S   ADDRESS. 

Mr.  President, —  It  is  hardly  fair  to  introduce  me  as  one 
who  will  "make  an  address,"  when,  in  your  letter  inviting 
me  to  be  present,  you  said  that  I  could  speak,  on  the  express 
condition  that  I  would  talk  only  five  minutes ;  and  I  had  fully 
determined  to  conform  to  that  condition  to  the  letter,  well 
knowing  that  the  tendency,  on  such  occasions  as  this,  is  to 
make  the  exercises  somewhat  too  lengthy. 

Although  I  had  known  that  my  friend,  the  orator  of  this 
occasion,  was  a  descendent  from  one  of  the  honored  families  of 
Windham,  I  did  not  realize  that  he  had  inherited  the  sturdy 
determination  and  insistence  upon  carrying  through  what  he 
had  undertaken  to  do,  which  has  placed  him  in  the  front 
rank  of  the  Massachusetts  bar,  till  one  j-ear  ago  last  summer, 
when  it  was  my  great  good  fortune  to  make  a  pilgrimage, 
with  him  as  a  most  delightful  travelling  companion,  to  that 
Mecca  of  all  true  sons  of  the  original  town  of  lyondonderry 
in  New  Hampshire,  viz.,  lyondonderry  in  Ireland. 

On  leaving  the  steamer  at  Queenstown,  he  had  been  un- 
fortunate enough  to  leave  thereon  his  broom  clothesbrush 
to  pursue  its  way  to  Liverpool ;  and  to  remove  the  dust 
of  travel  he  determined  to  buy  another  clothesbrush,  and 
it  must  be  a  broom -corn  clothesbrush,  too;  none  of  your 
English  wooden -backed,  clumsy  things  would  do.  After 
inquiring  at  various  promising-looking  shops  in  the  south  of 
Ireland  for  the  article  he  wanted,  and  being  met  with  the 
reply,  "I  don't  know  what  you  mean,  sir,"  I  told  him  I  would 


26 


wager  him  a  good  dinner  that  he  would  not  find  such  an 
article  in  Ireland.  Thereupon,  with  his  Windham  Scotch- 
Irish  determination,  he  announced  that  he  would  find  just 
that  article  before  he  left  Ireland.  So  we  searched  Dublin, 
IvOndonderr>',  Portrush  and  Belfast ;  and,  at  last,  less  than 
an  hour  before  taking  the  steamer  at  the  latter  place  for 
Liverpool,  he  was  rewarded  by  obtaining  the  object  of  his 
long  search  and  ardent  desire,  and  winning  from  me  his  bet, 
in  the  shape  of  what  the  clerk  in  the  shop  called  ' '  an  Ameri- 
can whisk,"  about  as  large  as  our  brooms  for  sweeping  floors. 

And  then  appeared  in  him  another  characteristic  of  his 
Scotch-Irish  ancestry,  to  wit,  his  modesty ;  for,  when  I  sug- 
gested that  I  tie  the  brush  to  the  end  of  my  cane  and,  carry- 
ing it  aloft,  march  before  him  in  a  triumphal  progress  through 
the  streets  of  Belfast  to  the  steamer,  he  absolutely  refused  to 
allow  it. 

One  of  the  pleasantest  recollections  of  my  boyhood  days, 
passed  as  a  Gentile  just  outside  the  favored  town  of  Wind- 
ham, was  the  permission  given  me  by  Deacon  Sam  (not 
"Samuel;  "  that  doesn't  sound  right)  Anderson,  of  blessed 
memory,  to  take  books  from  a  little  school-district  library, 
given  to  each  school  district  in  Windham,  I  think,  by  Hon. 
John  Nesmith,  of  Lowell.  Nothing  that  I  have  seen  in  my 
mature  years  in  the  shape  of  libraries  —  the  one  j^ou  to-day 
dedicate  (with  all  due  respect  to  the  donor),  the  new  Con- 
gressional Library  at  Washington,  or  that  of  the  British 
Museum,  or  any  other — has  awakened  in  me  the  interest 
and  regard  which  I  then  had  for  that  little  library,  containing 
perhaps  fifty  books,  covered  with  brown  cloth,  all  alike,  and 
kept  in  a  plain  little  wooden  case,  about  two  feet  by  three, 


27 

in  the  front  entry  of  the  good  deacon's  house,  in  the  westerly 
part  of  the  town. 

I  know  not  whether  any  of  those  little  libraries  are  now 
in  existence.  If  there  is  one,  why  would  it  not  be  a  good 
suggestion  to  place  it  in  a  suitable  position  in  the  library 
now  dedicated,  that  all  may  see  and  compare  the  noble 
library  and  beautiful  building  of  to-day  with  the  handful  of 
books  and  their  modest  housing,  which  were  truly  the  seeds 
from  which  they  sprung  ? 

I  have  sometimes  thought  it  was  in  the  nature  of  a  pay- 
ment due  from  me,  an  outsider,  to  the  old  "stone  dam" 
school  district,  or  the  town,  for  the  privilege  of  using  that 
modest  little  library,  that,  twenty-five  years  later,  I  was  per- 
mitted, as  executor  of  the  will  of  the  late  Thomas  Nesmith, 
of  Lowell,  to  pay  over  to  the  proper  officials  of  the  town  that 
noble  legacy,  with  which  to  purchase  the  body  of  the  library 
which  now  has,  through  the  generosity  of  another  of  its  sons, 
so  fitting,  convenient  and  handsome  a  home. 

The  poet  Whittier  might  well  have  associated  with  the 
schoolhouse  and  the  church  spire,  as  symbols  of  the  glory 
and  security  of  the  State,  the  public  library. 

It  stands  for  the  same  principles,  and  points  the  road 
to  a  virtuous,  intelligent  and  well  -  balanced  manhood  and 
womanhood ;  and  its  influence  upon  the  coming  generation 
is  not  less  than  that  of  the  school  and  the  church. 

There  is  no  danger  that  the  average  man,  woman  or  child 
iu  our  New  England  communities  will  read  too  much,  and 
become  a  mere  bookworm,  and  nothing  more.  The  tenden- 
cies are  all  the  other  way.  Our  life  is  too  practical,  too 
much — and  necessarily — occupied  with  the  physical  needs 


28 


of  our  daily  life,  and  the  importance  of  "getting  ahead  in  the 
world,"  to  arouse  any  fear  that  we  shall  spend  too  much  time 
in  the  cultivation  of  the  mind  by  reading. 

So  long,  then,  as  any  town  or  community  has  the  good 
fortune  to  possess  a  public  library  free  to  all,  let  it  cherish, 
value  and  protect  it ;  for  it  will  return  to  that  community, 
jointly  with  the  school  and  the  church,  a  large  return  in  all 
that  makes  life  worth  the  living. 

The  President  :  Ladies  and  Gentlemen, —  There  is  one 
whose  voice  has  joyous  welcome  here.  I  now  introduce  the 
Rev.  Augustus  Berry,  of  Pelhani. 

Mr.  President,  and  Citizens  of  Windham, —  I  know  very 
well  that  this  is  an  occasion  that  demands  brevity  in  re- 
marks. Nevertheless,  I  feel  myself  not  merely  complimented 
but  honored  by  an  invitation  to  some  part  in  it.  I  am  grate- 
ful to  the  people  of  Windham  for  the  invitations  they  have 
extended  to  me  to  be  present  on  the  many  public  observances, 
dedications,  commemorations  and  anniversaries  they  have 
observed  during  the  last  thirty-seven  years,  and  the  pleasant 
parts  they  have  given  me  in  them.  I  confess  I  have  desired 
a  brief  part  in  the  exercises  of  this  day.  I  was  present  at 
the  services  of  the  opening  of  this  library,  twenty-eight  years 
ago,  next  21st  of  June.  Hon.  John  C.  Park,  of  Boston,  made 
the  chief  address,  and  Mr.  William  H.  Anderson  spoke  ap- 
propriately and  entertainingly,  as  he  has  this  day  ;  and  a  very 
pleasant  part  in  the  exercises  was  given  to  myself.  I  am  very 
glad  to  be  present  at  the  dedication  of  a  permanent  home  for 


29 

the  library,  after  the  lapse  of  more  than  a  quarter  of  a  century, 
and  to  listen  to  exercises  so  appropriate,  so  instructive,  of 
such  merit, —  viewed  from  any  standpoint, —  so  inspiring  and 
entertaining;  and  I  consider  it  a  great  privilege,  even  honor, 
to  be  thus  connected  with  the  history  of  this  library,  and  the 
noble  people  of  this  town,  that  has  a  history  of  such  interest 
and  worth,  even  if  my  connection  with  it  be  by  such  tiny 
threads.  I  was  pleased,  indeed  stirred,  with  tender  memories 
of  my  own  boyhood,  by  the  remarks  of  Mr.  Anderson  about 
one  of  the  little  libraries  of  the  town  of  Windham,  kept  at 
the  house  of  a  good  deacon,  who  loaned  a  book  to  him,  a 
t/Ondonderry  boy ;  the  inspiration  the  book  was  to  him, 
and  the  wish  that  one  of  those  little  libraries  could  be  pro- 
cured, and  deposited  in  the  new  library  building.  And  this 
moves  me  to  make  a  suggestion  that  this  be  done  ;  and  not 
only  this,  but  that  the  new  building  be  considered  a  reposi- 
tory of  antique  articles,  implements,  books  and  things,  that 
will  furnish  to  future  generations,  not  only  mementos  of  the 
past,  but  helps  to  illustrate  to  them  the  life  of  those  who 
have  gone  before.  You,  Mr.  President,  have  referred  to  this 
in  your  admirable  history  of  Windham.  This,  too,  is  in 
accord  with  the  noble  motive  of  the  donor  of  this  not  only 
beautiful  but  magnificent  building, —  the  perpetuating  the 
memory  of  a  parent.  This  includes  in  itself  all  other  tender 
motives  of  the  human  heart ;  everything  of  human  thought, 
of  beauty  and  of  noble  sentiment  that  uplifts  the  life, 
charms,  comforts  and  upholds  it ;  everything  that  makes  the 
coming  generations  mindful  of  their  indebtedness  to  those 
who  preceded  them;  everything  that  attaches  the  past,  the 
present  and  future  with  indissoluble  ties. 


30 

I  have  thought  much,  in  the  passing  years,  about  a  build- 
ing of  its  own  for  this  library.  I  have  often  spoken  with 
Windham  people  about  it, — how  much  a  building  would  add 
to  the  library's  power  and  increase  its  usefulness ;  and  with 
the  people  of  Windham  I  rejoice  to  see  this  day,  which  they 
have  been  waiting  and  hoping  for. 

Th:©  President  :  Ladies  and  Gentlemen, — To  this  happy 
moment  no  one  has  looked  forward  with  greater  satisfaction 
than  our  guest,  George  Washington  Armstrong,  Esq.,  of 
Brookline,  Mass.  He  will  now  gladly  present  the  keys  of  the 
library  building  to  the  chairman  of  trustees.  Rev.  James 
Pethick  Harper. 

Mr.  Armstrong  was  greeted  with  warm  and  long-continued 
applause.     He  spoke  very  briefly  :  — 

Mr.  President,  Ladies  and  Gefitlemen, —  If  there  was  any 
doubt  in  the  mind  of  any  one  why  we  were  called  here  to-day, 
the  words  of  Mr.  Pillsbury,  and  others,  must  have  dispelled 
it.  The  part  acted  by  me  in  the  memorial  building  is  about 
over.  It  only  remains  for  me  to  place  in  your  hands,  Mr. 
Harper,  the  keys  of  the  library  building.  I  charge  you,  your 
associates  and  your  successors,  to  guard  it  well,  that  it  may 
ever  stand,  not  only  as  a  home  for  the  library  given  to  the 
town  by  Mr.  Nesmith,  but  as  a  memorial  hall  for  those  born 
in  Windham,  dying  in  the  town,  or  anywhere  else,  in  the 
wide  world,  for  ever  and  ever. 


31 


THE   ADDRESS   OF   REV.   JAMES   P.    HARPER. 

Mr.  Armstrongs — It  is  my  great  pleasure,  as  one  of  the 
trustees  of  the  Nesmith  Library,  to  receive  from  you,  for  the 
town,  the  keys  of  this  beautiful  and  useful  building,  in  which 
to  place  our  store  of  books.  It  is  a  pleasure,  not  only  because 
of  its  money  value,  but  because  it  shows  you  have  had 
thought  and  the  best  interest  of  the  people  in  mind. 

In  receiving  these  keys,  sir,  we  promise  you  that  we  shall 
always  seek  to  administer  this  trust  for  the  best  interest  of 
the  people  of  Windham. 

What  the  public  library  is  we  know ;  we  know  its  work  : 
but  who  can  forecast  its  benefits  to  this  town  ?  I  cannot  lift 
the  vail  which  hides  the  future  ;  but  we  know  that  its  influ- 
ence will  ever  be  on  the  side  of  private  virtue  and  public 
honor,  and  while  it  exists  it  is  a  living,  active  force  against 
ignorance  and  crime. 

Happily  for  us  that  this  gift  comes  from  one  who  is  worthy 
of  doing  good  deeds,  whose  character  gives  grace  and  dig- 
nity to  the  good  he  does !  We  know,  sir,  that  this  gift  is  to 
you  sacred,  as  it  is  in  memory  of  your  father ;  therefore,  it 
stands  for  all  that  is  pure  and  holy  in  life  and  its  intentions. 

On  the  part  of  the  people  of  Windham  I  thank  you  for 
this  beautful  and  useful  building. 

William  Calvin  Harris,  Esq.,  read  the  following  resolu- 
tions, and  thanked  Mr.  Armstrong  for  his  munificent  gift :  — 

At  a  meeting  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  town  of  Windham,  N.  H. , 
held  Jan.  4,  1899,  the  following  preamble  and  resolutions  were  unani- 
mously adopted  :  — 


32 

Whereas,  we  desire  to  express  to  Mr.  George  Washington  Arm- 
strong our  appreciation  of  his  munificent  gift  of  a  home  for  the  Nes- 
mith  Library, —  a  gift  that  is  so  opportune,  so  substantial,  so  generous 
in  its  proportions,  making  provision  not  only  for  present  need  but 
for  the  distant  future,  and  to  which  he  has  given  his  personal  care 
and  thought : 

Resolved,  That  in  the  spirit  which  prompted  his  gift  we  recognize 
the  feeling  of  kindredship  with  his  father's  people,  and,  in  the  gift 
itself,  a  memorial  of  one  who  was  from  birth  to  manhood  one  of  us, 
we  see  the  worthy  son  of  a  worthy  sire,  and  that  in  the  success  of  the 
children  is  the  real  and  rightful  success  of  the  parent's  life  ; 

Resolved,  That  in  the  elegance  of  the  finish,  the  convenience  and 
beauty  of  its  appointments,  the  completeness  of  all  its  equipments,  we 
recognize  the  delicate  taste  and  liberal  hand  of  the  generous  giver, 
who  has  left  nothing  undone  that  could  add  to  its  beauty  or  useful- 
ness ; 

Resolved,  That,  while  there  may  be  a  home  in  Windham  to  be  ben- 
efited by  the  means  of  diffusing  knowledge  and  breadth  of  culture,  we 
trust  that  this  gift  may  be  remembered  with  feelings  of  gratitude,  as 
the  good  deed  of  a  friendly  hand,  assisted  by  Leonard  Allison  Morri- 
son, of  Windham,  an  efficient  historian,  who  is  ever  ready  to  perpetuate 
the  memory  of  the  past. 

Mr.  John  Howard  Dinsmore  immediately  moved  that 
these  resolutions  be  accepted  and  adopted.  It  was  promptly 
seconded,  and  put  by  the  president,  and  they  were  unani- 
mously accepted  and  adopted. 

Mr.  Harris  had  the  resolutions  handsomely  engraved  on 
parchment,  bound  in  morocco,  which  he  presented  to  Mr. 
Armstrong,  as  a  souvenir  of  the  event,  which  the  latter 
received  with  thanks. 

The    President:    The    audience    is    invited    to    sing 


33 

"America,"  aftervs'^ards  the  benediction  will  be  pronounced 
by  Rev.  Augustus  Berry. 

"  America  "  was  sung  with  a  will,  and  the  meeting  closed 
with  the  benediction. 

BENEDICTION  BY   REV.    AUGUSTUvS  BERRY. 

And  now  may  the  blessing  of  Almighty  God,  the  grace  of 
our  I/Ord  and  Saviour,  Jesus  Christ,  and  the  enlightening 
and  guiding  power  of  the  Hoh'  Spirit  be  and  abide  with 
you,  and  all  the  future  generations  of  this  people.     Amen. 

Mr.  Armstrong  personally  inspected  the  work  several  times 
during  its  progress.  Mr.  Dinsmoor  usually  inspected  it  twice 
a  week,  and  made  a  close  survey.  He  looked  after  every  detail, 
and  at  last  the  work  was  done.  It  was  finished  Jan.  4, 
and  it  was  dedicated  Jan.  4,  1899,  at  2  o'clock  in  the  after- 
noon, in  time  for  Mr.  Armstrong  and  friends  to  arrive  from 
Boston,  Mass.  At  the  close  of  the  exercises  the  benediction 
was  pronounced  in  time  for  them  and  the  audience  to  inspect 
the  building.  This  was  a  delight  to  all.  They  were  all 
pleased  ;  particularly  so  with  the  memorial  room.  So  taste- 
ful, so  restful !  With  the  pictures  on  the  walls,  it  made  it 
seem  like  a  summerland. 

Mr.  Armstrong  was  kept  bus)'  receiving  the  personally 
expressed  thanks  of  his  many  friends.  The  party  from  Boston 
were  Mr.  Armstrong  and  Mrs.  Armstrong;  Mr.  H.  C.  Cottle, 
manager  of  the  Armstrong  newsstand  and  restaurants ;  Mr. 
Edward  A.  Winchester,  manager  of  Armstrong's  Transfer 
business,   and  Mrs.  Winchester;   Mr.  Francis  E.  Park  and 


34 

Mrs.  Park;  Mr.  William  W.  Dinsmoor,  the  architect,  and 
Mrs.  Dinsmoor.  They  took,  at  Canobie  I^ake,  the  5,15  train 
to  Boston,  satisfied  that  they  had  witnessed  the  consumma- 
tion of  a  good  deed.  The  audience  was  a  very  intelligent 
one,  and  the  occasion  was  one  of  the  red-letter  days  in  the 
history  of  the  town,  long  to  be  remembered. 


>195^ 


A    000  675  322     2 


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